And Then I bumped Into You
by ChiaraCro
Summary: Rachel has devoted her entire life to her career and, honestly, she never really felt like she was missing out on much. That is until someone moves in next door. Someone who makes her heart skip a beat just by being in the same room as her. Finchel.
1. Chapter 1

_**Chapter 1**_

After a rough day of rehearsing Rachel finally arrived at the building. Her feet were killing her after Santana forgot to pick her up and she had to take the subway and walk the rest of the way home. Looking at her phone once again she noticed Santana still hadn't called her back. The next time she would see her, she would kindly remind her of the dangers of a girl walking home alone at night in this city.

She entered the elevator and leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. She couldn't wait for that hot shower and that glass of wine she'd been craving all day. At the sound of the elevator doors opening she opened her eyes again, but she wasn't really looking where she was going.

She let out a tiny scream when she stumbled on something in front of her. Before she could hit the ground she felt someone's arms around her. Looking up at a pair of beautiful brown eyes made Rachel gasp. She didn't recognize the handsome, tall stranger holding her. Who was this person and what was he doing in her hallway? Her thoughts were interrupted when the man started talking.

"I am so sorry. I didn't think anyone would still be in here at this time. I should've been more careful with where I put my boxes. Are you okay?" He sounded genuinly concerned about her. He helped her back on her feet but still had his arms around her. It took a little while for Rachel to process what he had just said.

"I'm fine. Wait...your boxes? What are all those doing here?" She asked drawing her eyebrows together. This whole situation seemed a bit odd to her.

"Oh, well, I'm moving into my appartment today. These are the last of my boxes. Do you live on this floor too?" He asked her and he finally let go of her. The sudden loss of contact dissapointed her a little. Weird. She didn't even know this guy and he already had this effect on her.

"Yeah, I'm in appartment 4C. Which one's yours?" She wondered.

"Ah, looks like I'll be living next door to you. I'm in 4D. I look forward to seeing you around, neighbor." He winked as he held out his hand. After a little hesitation she took his hand and shook it. Hopefully he hadn't noticed the blush creeping up her cheeks. Even though her hand was much smaller than his, it seemed to fit perfectly into his.

"It was very nice meeting you,..."

"Finn. Finn Hudson." He smiled an adorable half smile and what was that? Was that a dimple? No one should be allowed to look that good just by smiling.

"Finn." She smiled back at him. "I'm Rachel, by the way."

"Well, Rachel. I guess I'll see you around." He let go of her hand and turned back to carrying his boxes inside.

"See you around, Finn." She got her keys out of her purse and made her way to her appartment door after almost tripping again. Boy, was this this going to be interesting...

 **A/N:Is this something anyone would like for me to continue? Reviews are appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2**_

Rachel groaned as she clutched the two pillows to her ears. She thought having a new, handsome neighbor who was about the same age as her would be nice. She was wrong. Finally deciding to just give up on trying to block all the noise coming from the appartment next door she threw the pillows she was holding away from her body and stood up.

Without giving it much thought she stormed out of her appartment and went knocking on his door. After having to wait a minute or so the door finally opened to reveal Finn and an appartment filled with people she didn't recognize. Even though he had annoyed her this past week, Rachel couldn't help but notice that even at 3 in the morning he looked really good.

"Hi, Rachel. What are you doing here?" The bastard had the nerve to smile at her. Unbelievable. There was no way he didn't realize how loud this party going on at his place was. She decided she would answer his question anyway.

"Wel, Finn." She plastered on a fake smile before she continued. "This is the third night in a row that you've been having guests over and it is also the third night in a row that I've been having trouble sleeping. Do you see where I'm going with this?" She asked.

"You were bored and wanted to join us?" He asked her. The smile on his face indicated that he knew exactly where she was going with this.

"No, Finn. I don't want to join you. I would like to get some sleep before I have to go to work tomorrow morning." She answered not bothering to keep the annoyance in her voice from showing.

"It's 3AM already. You'd better get back to bed and try to get some sleep then." He answered calmly. Rachel crossed her arms, not believing what he had just said.

"That's what I was trying to..." Holding the bridge of her nose she took a deep sigh. "Can you just keep it down, please? And I'd appreciate it if you would throw your parties on the weekends from now on."

"Sure thing, Rachel." He answered without elaborating any further. He just stood there smiling. Frustrated with the fact that Finn didn't really seem to be listening she threw her hands up, turned around and walked back to her place. She was just about to go inside when she heard him.

"NIce pyjamas, by the way." Rachel noticed him looking up and down her body. She looked down at what she was wearing. Why was she wearing her pink pyjamas with white bunnies on it again? Oh, right. Because that comforted her when she was feeling blue. And having seen Brody again today meant she was in dire need of some comforting.

Not appreciating Finn's mockery of her sleeping attire she slammed the door, got back into bed and hoped the noise would stop or at least lessen soon. It didn't.

"Rachel, you look really tired. Are you okay?" She looked up from the floor, where she sat stretching, to find Blaine looking at her curiously. She got up before she answered.

"Ugh, I'm exhausted. I swear: I'm going to kill him!" She groaned in frustration.

"Who are you talking about?" Blaine grabbed a bottle of water and downed almost all of its content quickly. Despite not having any trouble sleeping last night, Blaine was also feeling a little tired. They had been going over some of the more difficult choreography today.

"I'm talking about my new neighbor. His name's Finn. I think I mentioned him before." Grabbing a towel she started wiping the sweat from her body.

"Oh, the cute tall guy you were talking about? What about him? Wait, did he keep you up all night?"

"Yes." She answered, perhaps a little too fast. Blaine's mouth dropped open.

"Rachel Berry! Since when are you so promiscuous?" He raised his eyebrows.

"Blaine! That's not what I meant." She whined.

"Enlighten me then."

"He was having people over and they were obnoxiously loud. I couldn't sleep. And this was the third night in a row. So I knocked on his door and told him to keep it quiet. "Sure" he told me but did he do anything about the noise at all? No. He didn't. And he made fun of my pyajamas." Opening her bag she started shoving all of her stuff inside.

"Take it easy, Rachel. That bag didn't do anything wrong."Blaine laughed. When Rachel looked up at him scowling he stopped laughing."I'm sure the guy isn't that bad. You just need to talk about this with him. Why don't you ask him to lunch sometime? He might be completely understanding once he hears what you've got to say. Besides, it wouldn't hurt you to let loose every once in a while. I think next time you should join the party." She wanted to be mad at Blaine but she knew that he was right. She might have been a little quick to judge. People called her uptight all the time. She decided then that she would give him the benefit of the doubt. But that didn't mean he would just get away with everything. Rachel Berry does not let people walk all over her.

"I'll think about it, Blaine. Thanks for listening." Finally picking up her bag they walked out of the theater together.

"That's what friends are for. Hey, What time will you be at the club tonight? You're still coming, right?"

"I think I'll be there at around ten. It depends on how long Santana will need helping me with my outfit, hair and makeup. I still don't know how she got me to agree with her giving me a makeover. Do you think I'll be able to convince her not to make me look too slutty tonight?"

"Yeah" He patted her on the shoulder. "Good luck with that."

 **A/N: I hope you guys like this. I'm really self-conscious about my writing and my English, but I try to make as little mistakes as possible. I also have a question for you: which Broadway musical do you think Blaine and Rachel should be rehearsing for? I had a few in mind(West Side Story, Funny Girl, Wicked, The Little Mermaid,…) but I don't really know which one to choose.**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter 3**_

"Oh god, no way. No way, Santana!" She looked at herself in the mirror once again. There was no way she was going out looking like this. Okay, she had to admit that Santana did a real good job with her hair and makeup. She loved that her long brunette locks were in waves and that her makeup looked sultry with smokey eyes without making her look cheap. She also loved the black pumps she was wearing and the cute purse she bought earlier today. The only thing wrong with her look was the dress she was wearing. It looked good on someone like Santana, sure, but on Rachel? She didn't know if she had the curves to pull it off. It was a little black dress with thin straps that revealed some cleavage and the hem reached mid-thigh.

"Are you kidding me, Rachel? You look amazing in that dress. It looks like it was made for you. It hugs your curves perfectly. I'm actually kind of jealous that my dress looks better on you than it does on me" Santana exclaimed.

"Curves? What curves? I don't have any!" Rachel pouted.

"Rachel," Santana grabbed Rachel's face in order to look her in the eyes. "You look amazing. Guys will be throwing themselves at you tonight. Don't doubt yourself. That is unlike the great Rachel Berry who I know, and, yes, occasionally annoys the shit out of me." That made Rachel chuckle a little.

"You really think I look good?" She sounded hopeful again.

"Yes. You look hot." Santana looked her up and down for a second before continuing. "Seriously, if you ever want to just go crazy for a night, Brittany would totally be up for a threesome." She winked.

"Thanks for the offer, Santana. But I'll have to pass." She said. This wasn't the first time Santana had offered her that and she was sure it wouldn't be the last time either. She still wasn't sure if she meant it as a joke or if she was serious but santana had also called her hot and that gave her confidence a boost.

"Okay, Berry. Grab your purse and let's get out of here. I bet everyone's already waiting for us. Come on! Get your tight butt in the elevator." She ushered Rachel into the elevator. Looking at Finn's door Rachel couldn't help but wonder where Finn was. She hadn't seen or heard from him all day.

They entered the club and quickly found their friends sitting in a corner. The table was already filled with drinks and everyone was laughing. Rachel couldn't help but smile as they approached the table. She might not have been the most popular girl in school but right now, she had a group of amazing friends who she wouldn't trade for anything in the world.

"Hi, Rachel." Blaine said.

"Wow, Rachel. You look good." Quinn exclaimed.

"You are glowing, girl." Mercedes pulled her in for a hug.

"Damn, girl. And I thought I looked good tonight." Kitty patted the spot next to her, indicating Rachel to take a seat next to her.

"It's nice to see you all dressed up, Rachel" Tina told her before placing a drink in front of her. "Here. Drink this. We ordered it for you." Rachel eyed the pink drink in front of her. Besides its awesome color, she wasn't sure about the drink.

"I don't know if I should be drinking tonight. You guys know it doesn't take much for me to get drunk." She tried to give it to someone else but her friends would have none of it.

"Oh hell to the no! I don't think so." Said Mercedes. "We ordered that for you and you're going to drink it."

"Rachel." Quinn pleaded. "You never go out with us anymore. And with you being busy with rehearsals all the time, it shouldn't hurt to let loose a little." Offering a sweet smile Quinn placed the drink back in front of Rachel. Finally reaching for the drink Rachel smiled.

"So what am I drinking?" She asked as she studied the drink.

"That, my friend, is a cosmopoliton. Drink up." Kitty encouraged.

"Well, it's pink so it must be good." She tried some."I could get used to this taste." Her friends cheered as she tried some more.

They had a great time talking about all sorts of things before they reached a certain topic. One that Rachel wasn't the biggest fan of: their love lives.

"So, Rachel, someone told me that you have a little crush on your new neighbour. You'd better tell us what's going on before I go snooping around. And you know I will." Santana threatened.

"It's nothing. I thought he was attractive. That's all. Can we talk about something else?" She started to get uncomfortable. She liked it when people focused their attention on her for her talent, not when it came to her love life. Blaine, noticing Rachel's discomfort, quickly changed the subject.

"How about we hit the dancefloor. I've been sitting for way too long and I really want to show you guys my new moves." He got up and the girls started following.

The dancefloor was packed with good looking people but there was still space for the group to show their own moves. Blaine was really getting into it when this Katy Perry song came on and Rachel couldn't help but giggle. It might have been because of the alcohol. She had only had one drink at this point but because of her tiny body she felt a little tipsy already.

The girls and Blaine were all dancing with each other, occasionally getting another drink. Santana, however, was heating up the dancefloor with some guy. This went on for a while before Rachel pulled her aside.

"Santana, what are you doing? You do remember you and Britanny are together, right?" Was Santana really going to cheat on her girlfriend?

"Calm your tits, Berry. Brittany doesn't mind when I dance with some guy. She knows I like to tease these boys with my hot Latina body but, at the end of the day, she's the only one for me. She's the one that holds my heart." Rachel released her grip on Santana's arm. She might not fully understand her friend's relationship, but she knew they loved each other very much. One day she hoped to find what they had found with each other.

"I'm sorry, Santana. That wasn't any of my bussiness." She apologized.

"Don't worry about it. Now why don't you join me on the dancefloor? There are actually quite a few good looking man here. And we all know you need to get laid. Who knows how long it's been." Rachel looked at her feet and couldn't help but feel a little embarassed. It HAD been a while. She hadn't really had any guys get close to her since Brody and they had ended their relationship over a year ago. Still, she wasn't really the type to slut it up on the dancefloor.

Before she could overthink it Santana grabbed her hand and pulled her back onto the dancefloor. Santana started dancing and Rachel noticed a lot of eyes turned their way. She couldn't blame them. Her friend was the definition of sexy and she knew how to move. Would Rachel look silly next to someone as hot as Santana? No, damn it! She had been working her butt of and now was finally the time to relax and enjoy life a little.

Rachel started moving her body and noticed that some of those eyes that were watching Santana before were now watching her. And she had to admit she kind of liked the attention she was getting. She enjoyed moving her body and let the music take over her body. She couldn't remember the last time she had this much fun. She was starting to feel sweaty but she didn't mind. All of the sudden she felt two giant hands on her hips. A guy was holding her from behind. She freaked out a little at first but continued dancing. Feeling really curious she turned around to look at the face of the guy that was dancing with her.

She couldn't believe her eyes. Standing there, holding onto her hips was none other than Finn Hudson, her handsome neighbor.

 **A/N: I wanted to leave it at that because I wanted to be able to warn you guys for adult content in future chapters. There wasn't much finchel in this chapter but I promise that in the next one there will be more. Thank you for sharing your ideas on which musical I should choose. I've made my decision but you'll just have to wait and see. I'm not sure if Brody should be part of the musical too. What do you guys think? Him being in it or not influences how Rachel and Finn will be confronted with him in the future. Thanks for reading.**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter 4**_

"Finn." She gasped. "What are you doing here?" Even though she was surprised by his presence she continued to dance with him.

"I have this annoying neighbor who doesn't like it when I throw parties at my apartment so I decided to go out with my friends instead." He sounded smug but that wasn't the only thing Rachel noticed about him. His voice also sounded husky. Rachel was too focused on his voice and the goosebumps she had because of it that she didn't register what he had actually said for a minute. Finally focusing on his words she turned around.

"If I'm that annoying then why did you put your hands on me?" Rachel crossed her arms. She didn't understand this man standing in front of her. He grabbed her hips again, pulled her closer to him and whispered in her ear.

"When I saw you from the other side of the room, looking sexy as fuck and moving your hips like that, I had to put my hands on you. And it looks like I was right on time. All the dudes in this place have their eyes glued to you. If I had waited any longer another guy would have done it in my place. And we can't have that now, can we?" With his lips so close to her face it was hard to concentrate. And did he just call her sexy? He was messing with her head. She was done feeling helpless because of this man. She had to regain her composure.

"Maybe I like it when guys have their eyes on me." She challenged. "And who says you can just put your hands on me. I might be here with a guy. Did you stop to think about that?"

"You're here with your friends, Rachel. I didn't see any guy actually dancing with you. If you were here with a guy he would be dancing with you, for sure." He challenged back.

"He could be at the bar getting a drink. And maybe he just doesn't dance. Is that so hard to believe?" She swayed her hips before turning away from him. Before she even had a chance to take a step away from him he grabbed her arm, turned her around and pulled her close to him again.

"Where do you think you're going? And to answer your question: Yes, it's hard for me to believe. You don't leave a girl like you alone on the dancefloor. Even if you can't dance. Believe me, I'm a terrible dancer but even my terrible dancing skills wouldn't be able to keep me away from you. Now, tell me, why do you want to get away from me so badly?" He moved his hands to her hips again.

"I'm not trying to get away. I just don' t really believe you're that attracted to me. You're just trying to mess with me." She could see the confusion on his face before he responded.

"You don't believe I'm attracted to you?" He groaned in frustration. "Does this convince you otherwise." He ground into her making Rachel gasp. "You drive me nuts, Rach." He ground into her again. This time she could clearly feel something pressing into her. "You feel that? That's because of you. You have this effect on me." That's the moment Rachel forgot all about her friends and just gave in to what her body wanted: Finn.

They danced with each other and occasionally ground into one another. Their bodies were sweaty but they didn't care. At one point a piece of Rachel's hair stuck to her face. Finn reached for it and gently put it behind her ear. Rachel's breath caught in her throat when he leaned into her. She thought he was going in for a kiss but at the last moment , when his lips were almost on hers, he changed direction and put them next to her eat instead.

"That's better." He said. Rachel snapped out of it then. This man was making her feel things she had never felt before. And it scared her. A lot. She got out of the strong grip he had on her before she lost it completely. He looked at her confused waiting for her to explain her reaction.

"I'm sorry. It's really hot in here and I need a minute. I'm going to the bathroom." She left before Finn could start to argue with her.

Rachel entered the bathroom and took a deep breath. She felt hot and bothered just from dancing with this guy. That was so unlike Rachel Berry. She was starting to freak herself out when Quinn entered the club's bathroom.

"Rachel, what's going on. Are you okay? We saw you were dancing with some guy and next thing we know you were running for the bathroom. What happened?" She asked.

"That was Finn, the neighbor I was talking about. I don't know what happened to me. I'm not usually like that. But he put his hands on me and I just couldn't think straight anymore. What do I do, Quinn?" She felt so desperate for some advice from one of her best friends.

"Rachel, it looked like there was a real spark between you guys and everyone could feel the sexual tension between the two of you. It's not a bad thing to feel affected by someone. I think you should give him a chance." She squeezed Rachel's hand to let her know she was there for her.

"Quinn, I just can't. I can't think clearly when I'm around him. And with me being on Broadway for the first time soon I can't afford to lose focus. I can't afford to get lost in some guy. I don't want to throw away my shot at being a great actress. You know more than anybody that in the past I've allowed guys to get in the way of becoming a star. I don't what that to happen again." She sighed. "Can you please just get me out of here? I don't want to go back in there and face him again. I'd like to go home now." Quinn looked at her friend and could see she was on the verge of tears.

"Sure, Rachel. I'll go tell the girls that you're not feeling well and I'll take you back to your place." With that Quinn left. Rachel looked at herself in the mirror and wondered what had happened to her. She used to be different. She used to trust people. But people had taken advantage of her trust in the past. And she had made a promise to herself to never let people hurt her that way ever again.

Quinn came back after 10 minutes and took Rachel outside. They took a cab back to Rachel's place and after making sure Rachel was okay Quinn left. Rachel entered her apartment and was glad to be back home. She could finally breathe again. She took of her dress, put on one of her comfy pajamas and got into bed. She was just going to try and avoid Finn from now on. "Easier said than done" she thought to herself. He was still her neighbor. Shit.

 **A/N: Okay, I realize that this chapter contains angst and not everyone is a fan of that. But I think a little bit of angst every once in a while is needed to keep a story interesting. But don't worry. Finchel is not done for yet** **Also, my chapters aren't that long but I try to compensate for that by posting new chapters often enough. I just really hope someone enjoys my writing. I'm really insecure and always want to please everyone. But I realize that's not possible. I just hope some of you enjoy my writing. See you next time!**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter 5**_

Rachel was still tossing and turning in bed when she heard knocking on her door. She hoped it wasn't one of her friends. She really didn't want to deal with them at the moment. But it was worse. It was Finn.

"Rachel, are you in there?" She didn't respond. She didn't know how to. Why was he knocking on her door?

"Please open the door." He pleaded. She was still silent. She felt so embarrassed.

"Rachel, I'm not going anywhere. I care about you and I want to talk about what happened in there." He continued. Rachel considered opening the door for him.

"Rachel, I'm going to keep knocking on your door until you open it." She reluctantly got out of bed and walked to the door. She felt like Finn at least deserved to know why she couldn't continue with whatever was going on between them. She opened the door to reveal Finn looking miserable. Then he noticed that she had opened the door and he was obviously relieved.

"Rach, you opened the door!" He exclaimed.

"Yeah." She didn't know what else to say.

"So…can I come in?" He asked her. He noticed that her eyes were red and puffy and it made him feel even worse than before. Also, it made him wonder what he could've done to make her feel this way. He hoped she would open about it.

"Sure." she responded and she stepped out of the way to let him inside. Walking inside he took it all in. So this was what Rachel's apartment looked like? Interesting. Rachel led him over to the couch and they both took a seat.

"So could you tell me what made you freak out and run away from me?" He begged.

"I'm so sorry, Finn. I was dealing with some demons and I should've never danced with you in the first place. I apologize for my behavior." She admitted.

"I don't understand, Rach. I thought we had a great time dancing together. I-I Thought you were into me." The confidence had been in his voice when they were at the club, was now gone and he actually sounded insecure.

I was intere-I am interested in you. But I still shouldn't have danced with you. I didn't want to mislead you into thinking that I'm a girl who's into random hookups. Not that there's anything wrong with that. It just isn't me." She explained.

"Who said I just thought of you as a hookup." He felt a little insulted that she just assumed that's all he wanted.

"You don't think of me in that way?" She asked confused.

"No…Yes…I mean" He sighed. "I like you, Rach. But I wasn't looking for a hookup with you."

"Oh." She lowered her head clearly disappointed that she had misread him. He wasn't into her at all. That stung.

"That came out wrong. Let me explain myself a little better." He grabbed a hold of her hands. "I didn't think of you like that because I thought that maybe it could be more than that. I really want to take you out on a date sometime." Holding her hands a little tighter he looked into her eyes to gauge her reaction. She stayed quiet for too long. He didn't like where this was going.

"Finn…I don't think I can do that."

"Oh." He released the grip he had on her hands.

"It's not that you're not a nice guy. But I don't do that type of thing anymore." She looked at the floor, not daring to look him in the eyes any longer.

"What do you mean? Are you talking about dating?" When he saw Rachel slowly nodding her head, he continued. "But that's insane. Why wouldn't you date anymore? I don't understand." This whole conversation was weirding Finn out. Since when was being attracted to another person so hard? Rachel looked back up at him.

"Finn, it's complicated. There are some things that happened to me in the past that aren't very pretty. You wouldn't understand. You already think I'm crazy." She pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them.

"No, I don't. Try me, Rachel. I'm a good listener. And, honestly, I'm really curious to find out what happened. It must be something bad If it makes you question taking a chance on me." He moved closer to her on the couch before pleading. "Please, Rach." She had to fight to hide the little smile that began to show when she heard him calling her Rach. He had done that a few times before and she really liked that, despite only knowing each other a short amount of time, he still felt close enough to her to give her a nickname. The smile faded fast when she thought of what she was about to share with this man. She sighed and began her story.

"Two years ago when I had just graduated I immediately started auditioning for a bunch of stuff. I was lucky that after only a couple auditions I got a part in a new musical. This was a very exciting project and I hadn't seen anything like it before. We started working on this musical and I met the guy who was going to be my love interest on stage. We hit it off right away and started dating. It was really romantic. We got to work on this amazing musical together and after work we would come home and spent our time together there as well. To be honest I should have seen the signs, but I thought everything was great. I was just so happy to work on something I loved and to have someone to love at night. But I was naïve and just plain stupid." He grabbed her hands again, encouraging her to go on.

"As we were getting closer to the day we were going to open off-Broadway, we were both pretty busy. He started coming over a lot less and we would barely see each other at one point. He claimed it was because of our busy schedules and that he still had family and friends he had to spent time with. I didn't really question his motives. Then, one day, I was having lunch with a friend and when I went to the bathroom I overheard these girls…" Rachel stopped to wipe at some tears but before she had a chance to wipe them away, Finn did it for her.

"Go on, Rach. I'm listening." He reassured her.

"They-they talked about him. How he was practically having sex with all of Manhattan. I couldn't believe what I was hearing so I decided to confront him to see if it was true." She sighed. "He confessed that he was seeing other women but told me to not make a big deal of it. He said that, if I wanted him to be faithful, I should have told him explicitly that I didn't want him seeing any other women. When I told him I thought that that was obvious since we had been dating for months, he got mad at me. I told him that I couldn't continue dating him if he was still going to be seeing other people. He told me that I was selfish for not allowing him to blow off some steam from time to time. So we broke up." More tears had made their way rolling down her cheeks. Finn hated seeing her like this.

"Rach, I'm so sorry for you. He's a jerk. You deserve so much better than him." He squeezed her leg.

"Hold on, Finn. I'm not done yet. I haven't gotten to the worst part yet." She told him.

"You haven't?" He asked confused. How could this possibly get worse?

"Breaking up with someone who you work with isn't easy. Especially when you have to pretend to be in love with that person every day. But I thought that I could handle it. It would just be a matter of handling this like a professional and after dreaming of being on stage my entire life, even if it was just off-Broadway, I wasn't going to let him get in the way of my dreams. So the day after the break-up I returned to work with my head held high. They told me that they changed their minds and that I wasn't really right for the role anyway. I helped create that role! There wasn't anyone more perfect for the role! And all this was just weeks before the opening. I had worked my butt off and all of the sudden they decided to fire me? Something didn't add up. I went home and basically lost my will to live. I thought I had it all one moment and the next, it all got taken away from me. My friends tried to help me through it and Santana, one of my best friends, decided to do some investigating. Turns out that the girl who had taken my place was totally lacking my talent. She got the role because she was one of the girls he was cheating on me with. He was crazy about her and she really wanted a part in a musical. So he went behind my back and convinced everyone that I should be fired. They obviously listened to his advice. It might have had something to do with the fact that he had been friends with a bunch of the guys working on this musical even before he got cast in it himself. I was devastated for weeks, months even. Eventually I started auditioning again but it took me forever to finally get cast in something. I'm so grateful to finally have the chance to be in a musical again, and on Broadway this time, but I l made a promise to myself: never again would I let a guy get in the way of my dreams again. I've been focused solely on work all this time and now that I'm so close to achieving my dream I can't allow myself to get distracted. I'm sorry, Finn." She was sobbing now. She felt embarrassed that he knew about that part of her life now but was glad he knew the truth now.

"Rachel, I had no idea. That is awful. I can't even begin to understand how someone could do something so horrible. Especially to you. From what I've gathered, you're a wonderful person. And I hate that you've lost your trust in men because of some dick who couldn't keep it in his pants." Before he could even think about it he pulled her in for a hug. He felt the need to comfort her in any way possible. This woman had gone through something horrible. He was glad that she had friends who supported her and got her back on her feet. He didn't know about her performing skills but he was convinced that she would do great. Now he would make it his mission to get her to trust him enough to go out with him. He wanted to restore her faith in men again. Even if this thing between them didn't work out in the end, he would be happy to help her regain some trust.

"I promise you, Rachel, I will do anything in my power to help you with this. I want to help you forget all about this guy. And I want to take you out on a date." He begged of her.

"I don't know about that last part, Finn. I like spending time with you but I'm not sure I'm ready for that yet." She liked spending time with him, there was no way denying it. And sitting here, with his arms wrapped around her, she wanted nothing more than trust him with her heart. But she honestly wasn't ready for that.

"I'm not forcing you into anything, Rachel, but know this: I'll be here for you. I'd like to get to know you better. And I'll be working my ass off to make you trust me enough to go out on a date with me. But until then, whenever you need a friend, you can find me next door. Okay, Rach?" He asked her, looking into her eyes with a determined look on his face.

"O-okay." She responded, not sure what she was agreeing to.

Now, it's pretty late already and I think you should get some sleep. It's been a long night for both of us. So I'm going back to my apartment. Are you going to be okay in here by yourself?" He asked, getting up from the couch.

"Yes, I'll be fine." She reassured him.

"Okay." He walked toward her door, but before he left her apartment he turned toward her one last time. "I'll be looking forward to getting to see more of you in the future." He winked then left.

Rachel got back into bed and frowned. What had just happened? She was kind of confused. Guess she hadn't seen the last of Finn after all.

 **A/N: Hi, guys. Sorry it took a while for me to upload another chapter. My exams will be starting soon so I'll have less time to write. I will still try to update often enough to keep you happy. So, this chapter contained a part of Rachel's past and, more specific, an ex-boyfriend. Now, I didn't use a name for him but I thought of Brody when I wrote this. My question is: should I call him Brody in the story too or do you want an OC? I had a few reviews requesting for him not to be in the story but I'd like for him to be that ex. I promise you that I wouldn't use him in a way to come between Finn and Rachel. I'd just like to use him as an ex for Rachel and possibly have Finn kick his ass in the future. Let me know what you think. I love getting reviews from you guys.**


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter 6**_

"No, Blaine. I'm not up for a sleepover tonight. I swear, rehearsals almost killed me today. I don't know why they wanted to add all those complicated dance moves to the choreography last minute. I had finally mastered all of the choreography and now I'm stressing over the fact that I might break something before opening night. So, I'm just going home and watch some TV by myself and hope that I'm not a zombie when I wake up tomorrow." Rachel entered the elevator, clutching her phone between her ear and shoulder while she was holding her bags. She had to stop lugging so much stuff around. But Rachel Berry never went anywhere unprepared.

" _Rachel! You've been blowing me off for weeks now. You're always too busy to do anything fun. I still can't believe you went out with us last week. I'm starting to think you don't like hanging out with me anymore."_

To be honest, it had been a while since they had spent time together, just the two of them. But they would have time for things like that once they opened on Broadway. Right now, her priority was to get everything ready in time. Especially her choreography.

"You know you're like my best friend. I'll always like spending time with you. We'll do something together soon. You know I want to work on my dancing first. It's always been the thing I have to work the hardest at."

" _You'll do great and you know it. You're a wonderful dancer. And, honestly, if you can survive dance classes with Cassandra July, you can do this too."_

"I hope so. Blaine, I'm going to hang up now because I'm about to enter my apartment and I need my hands free to look for my key. But I promise, we'll hang out soon. Just not tonight. I just want to sink into my couch and not get up for the next few hours. Bye. Love you." She arrived at her door and plopped her bags down next to it.

" _Bye, I guess I'll see you tomorrow."_ And with that, Blaine hung up.

Looking through the first bag, she couldn't seem to find her keys. That was odd. She usually put her keys in there. Guess she had just put them in the other one in all her haste this morning. She quickly scanned through the other bag but, once again, it didn't seem to hold her keys. If Rachel Berry used curse words, this would have been the time to do so.

Panicking, she began unloading her bags in the hope that her keys were somewhere to be found. Nope. She had not brought her keys with her. She began sliding down the doors with her hands in her hair. Did this have to happen tonight? Santana had her spare key in case of emergencies like this but that wouldn't help her tonight. Santana was visiting family this week so Rachel wouldn't be able to get that spare key. She was going through the options in her head but she couldn't seem to come up with a solution. She would have to call a locksmith but that would have to wait until tomorrow morning.

She was about to call one of her friends to see if she could stay with them for the night when she heard someone exiting the elevator. She looked up to see Finn entering the hallway. He was holding a box but Rachel couldn't quite see what it was. Then she smelled the most amazing thing: pizza. Her stomach growled. She hadn't eaten all night because of staying at the theater until late. She would love some pizza.

"Is that pizza?" She got up from where she had been sitting on the floor. Finn turned around, surprised at the sound of her voice.

"Oh. Hey, Rach. Yes, this is pizza. What are you doing in the hallway at this hour? You're just standing here?" He asked.

"Don't laugh." She warned.

"What's going on?"

"I seem to have forgotten my keys and now I can't get inside." She pouted.

"Oh, well, if you want to come wait inside for a bit, you're welcome to join me." He offered.

"Are you sure that's okay? I wouldn't want to be a bother." She replied.

"Yes, come in!" He opened his door and Rachel followed him inside. Once inside, Rachel took notice of how decent his apartment seemed to be. Rachel wouldn't have been surprised to find a messy apartment. Finn was a man in his early twenties after all. But this place looked very nice.

"You have a lovely apartment, Finn." She remarked.

"Thanks. I really enjoy living here. I haven't spent that much time in here, though. Work's been keeping me busy." He put the box on the dinner table while Rachel put her bags down next to the door. He opened the lid of the box and Rachel's stomach complained again. Finn heard and pointed for her to take a seat at the table.

"You sure?" She asked.

"Of course. You haven't eaten yet tonight?" He placed two plates on the table and Rachel took a seat.

"No, I have only just returned from my work." Finn attacked the slice on his plate, surprising Rachel with how quickly he could eat his food. She started eating her piece at a slower pace. God, did she love pizza. Luckily, Finn had brought one without meat on it. Although, Rachel was sure she would have cheated on her vegetarianism to eat a slice or two. She was that hungry.

"So, Finn, what do you do for a living?" She asked curiously.

"I'm a firefighter. I have been for about three years." He shared.

"Oh, that's interesting. Do you enjoy doing that?" She asked him.

"Yes, I love helping people. For a while I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with my life. Then, a friend from my childhood told me about this job. So I decided to give it a shot. Turns out that I love it." He shrugged, continuing eating his pizza.

"You told me the other day that you were going to be on Broadway. What's that like?"

"To be on a stage, it's the most amazing feeling in the world. I can't wait until we actually open on Broadway. We've put a lot of work into this musical and I just can't wait for people to see it. Have you ever been to a musical, Finn?" Finn got up from his seat and went to get them both something to drink. He returned to his seat before he answered.

"I have seen a few. But that was because my brother made me." He confessed.

"Oh, you have a brother? Do you have any other siblings?" She finished her second slice of pizza before throwing her napkin on the plate. She was surprised to see Finn was still eating.

"No, just the one. He's actually my stepbrother. My father died when I was very little and my mom remarried when I was sixteen. Do you have any brothers or sisters?" He finally finished the rest of the pizza, leaned back in his chair and patted his stomach.

"No, it's just me and my dads. It would have been nice to have a brother or sister to watch musicals with." She took another sip from her drink.

"Well, Kurt sure watches a lot of them. He designs clothes for a bunch of Broadway stars." Rachel gasped.

"Wait, this isn't by any chance Kurt Hummel, one of the most famous designers in NYC?" He had to be kidding.

"Yup, that's him. What musical were you in again? If it's on Broadway, he'll probably come and watch it."

"I can't believe you're Kurt Hummel's brother! And I'm playing Ariel in the Broadway production of The Little Mermaid." She couldn't help the excitement that could be heard in her voice. She was so proud to be playing this role.

"Wow, impressive. Your first time on Broadway and you're already playing the lead. Maybe I should come watch your show." He smiled that handsome smile that always made Rachel lose focus for a second.

"Finn! I would love that! If you want, I could probably hook you up with some tickets for the opening night." She was so excited to be able to show Finn her talent on the stage.

"That would be great." They continued talking about all sorts of things. They really hit it off. Neither of them seemed to notice that time just flew by. It was well into the night when they finally noticed the time. They were already seated in Finn's large, comfy couch.

"Finn! I forgot all about the time. I should call someone to see if I can stay over. God, it's already so late. I shouldn't have waited for so long." She started looking for her phone when Finn interrupted her.

"Why don't you stay here?" He asked her.

"W-what?" Rachel stuttered.

"Yeah, you need a place to sleep tonight. I've got a comfortable couch. I don't see why you have to wake one of your friends. You can sleep here tonight and then, first thing in the morning, you can call a locksmith. It would be easier for you to just stay here." He offered.

"Are you sure? I mean, we haven't known each other for that long. Although, I have opened up to you about things I don't usually share that easily. Embarrassingly so. So, I don't expect such an offer from you." She explained.

"No, it's okay. Really. And I'm glad you opened up to me that night. It makes me understand better where you're coming from. I trust you enough to let you sleep over. It's not a big deal." Finn started looking for an extra blanket and pillow to lay on the couch, not taking no for an answer.

"I could be a murderer, for all you know." She tried.

"I think I'll take my chances. Wouldn't be so bad if you were the last person I saw." He winked. She blushed as his attempts at flirting reappeared.

"Well, thank you. That's very chivalrous of you." She started looking through her bags for her toothbrush. She had a spare in there to use a the theatre.

"That's a good thing, right?" He raised an eyebrow.

" Very." She answered. Her smile disappeared when she realized that she didn't have anything to sleep in. She had some extra clothes with her, but those were her work out clothes. She wouldn't be able to sleep in those sweaty clothes.

"I don't have anything to wear to bed." She said, talking to herself. Finn, however, heard this and briefly disappeared into his bedroom. He returned with one of his shirt and threw it Rachel's way. Rachel looked at the t-shirt she had caught. It was an FDNY t-shirt.

"You sure?" She asked.

"Yeah, no problem. Let me show you the bathroom so you can change." Finn led her to the bathroom door. Rachel went in, changed into the shirt and brushed her teeth. She was glad she could just go to sleep instead of trying to find a friend who was still awake and who would have her over. She made herself comfortable on the couch after Finn had offered to take the couch and let her sleep in his bed, but Rachel wouldn't have any of it. He was already being so generous towards her, she couldn't take his bed too. And besides, she truly felt very comfortable in his big shirt and on his big, comfy couch.

"So, I'm going to bed now. Goodnight, Rachel!" He started turning of the lights in his apartment.

"Goodnight, Finn." He then disappeared into his bedroom and Rachel couldn't help but feel glad to know this man. Because, even though she didn't want to date this man, she still felt her life had gotten a little better with him being her friend. At least, that's what she was trying to tell herself. It's normal to dream about a person's dimples without having romantic feelings for them, right?

The next morning, Rachel woke up feeling disoriented. It took her a minute to realize that she was in Finn's apartment instead of her own. She smiled thinking back to his generosity last night. The least she could do was repay him with a nice breakfast. She already knew about Finn's love for food. She got up from the couch and walked toward the fridge in the kitchen to see if he had something she could make. Turns out that he doesn't really have much in his fridge or cabinets. Quick trip to the store it is then. She changed back into her clothes from the night before, left a note explaining that she was going to the store in case he woke up before she got back, grabbed her wallet and left for the store.

She returned twenty minutes later, grateful that there was a store around the corner and started unloading the contents of the bags she brought back. First thing she did was make some fresh squeezed orange juice. She put the two drinks on the table before turning toward the stove. She started making her famous blueberry pancakes and prayed that Finn would love them as much as her friends loved them. Finn woke up quickly after that. It might have had something to do with the delicious smell that surrounded the apartment.

"Hey, Rach. You're up early." Finn said as he entered the kitchen. Rachel looked at him and noticed he was only wearing shorts. Quickly turning back to her pancakes, she tried to get the image of him half naked out of her head.

"Good morning, Finn. I'm always up this early. I'm kind of a morning person." She flipped the pancake she was making.

"Smells good." He said as he came to stand beside her. "What are you making?"

"I'm making blueberry pancakes. I hope you like them. I wanted to do something to repay you for letting me sleep here." She put the first pancake on a plate and handed it to Finn. It was hard not to notice how his eyes lit up at the food being handed to him.

"Thanks. You didn't have to do that but I'm really glad you did." He started diving in and it wasn't long before he started praising Rachel. Rachel made a bunch of pancakes before she joined Finn at the table.

They chatted during the remainder of breakfast and had a great morning before they cleaned up together. Rachel called a locksmith to finally be able to get back into her apartment. He showed up, helped her into her apartment and left again.

"Thank you for letting me stay, Finn." She told him

"No problem, Rach. I had fun." He responded. Before she could really think about it, she quickly put her arms around his middle and hugged him. He hugged her back but she released him all too quickly.

"I'll see you around, Finn." She disappeared into her apartment leaving Finn staring at her door.

"See you around, Rach."

 **A/N: I hope you guys still enjoy reading this. I read your remarks and try to work on the things that I might have done wrong. I revealed the musical in this chapter. I'm really glad that a bunch of you wanted me to choose The Little Mermaid. I'm obsessed with the movie and liked the idea of choosing something a little different. Please keep reviewing. Until next time, my friends!**


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